Beaten
by Mika Casey
Summary: Zaku had seen Kin's bruises. He had assumed it was from falling out of a tree, or a battle; but he had been wrong.... ZakuKin


**Disclaimer:** Naruto characters (c) Masashi Kishimoto.

**Author's Note**: Yay! More ZakuKin. It's just a little oneshot, not very long. Please read and review!

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**_Beaten_** by Mika Casey

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Zaku's fingers trembled as he ran a tattered washcloth over his comrade's bruised back. The two stood waist-deep in a slow moving, chilly river, Zaku fully clothed and his companion shirtless.

"Kin, how long has this been happening?" The boy's voice was low, like a growl. Inside, Zaku wanted to rip Kin's father to shreds. He wanted to cut his eyes out with his kunai and spill his guts over an open fire.

Kin's voice was like that of a ghost. "Since my mother passed away. He started drinking, five or six bottles of sake every night. When he's drunk, and I'm home, he calls me by her name and..." Her voice trailed off, letting Zaku complete the sentence in his mind.

As silence surrounded the two, Zaku continued to wash Kin's back. The two had been on a mission alone, because Dosu was back in the sound village with a broken leg, and they had stopped to bathe in a cold stream. Zaku had seen Kin's bruises, and immediately wanted to know what had happened. He had assumed it was from falling out of a tree, or a battle; but he had been wrong.

Caressing the swollen purple patches of skin with the rough cloth, he spoke softly. "I'm sorry, Kin." Once he had finished washing her, he turned away and walked over the smooth river pebbles to the shore. The land he was on was a small clearing that touched the edge of the stream, perfect for a camp. He scooped up Kin's dry shirt and held it out, turning away so he didn't see her wading to shore behind him. He felt her take the shirt, and he waited a moment so she could pull the fabric over her head.

When he turned to look at her, he caught a glimpse of her eyes. The obsidian orbs were filled with tears that threatened to spill over, and she was biting her lower lip to prevent herself from crying.

"Kin..." He said, heart twisting in his ribcage.

She swallowed, tears vanishing from her eyes as if they were never there. She stared out into the sky, noting that the sun was setting over the horizon. "Zaku, it'll be dark soon. Let's make camp."

Nodding, Zaku understood why she didn't want to talk about the bruises right then. He approached a tree with a low branch that he had put their packs onto, and pulled a large blanket and four stakes out of it. Placing the packs on the ground, Zaku flung the blanket over the branch and staked the four corners down. Because of the way the fabric was cut, this made and instant tent. Extracting another blanket from Kin's bag, he went inside the tent and layed it out as the flooring. He unhooked the two sleeping bags from their packs and layed them out inside. He exited the tent to see Kin gathering firewood and piling it in the center of the clearing.

A sliver of the sun glowed on the horizon, and Zaku watched as Kin lit the fire with two sticks. She didn't even flinch when the fire licked her fingertips, surely giving her some burns. Zaku hated that he knew she had been through worse pain; both mentally and physically.

Zaku got two travel meals out of his backpack, handing one to Kin and keeping one for himself. They held the plastic containers near the fire to warm them up, and Zaku looked at his companion. She was eating her food quietly, eyes never leaving the flames before them. The sun was completely gone, and was now replaced by the moon. It wasn't full yet, but its light still shone brightly down on Kin. It caressed her raven-colored hair, and made her black eyes look like silver.

After a while, Zaku told Kin that he was going to sleep. He gave her one last look, and sighed before retreating into the tent. He unzipped his sleeping bag and got into it, curling up into a ball and staring at the vacant sleeping bag to his left. He fell asleep thinking about the bruises that were on Kin's back, and the tears she had almost cried.

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Zaku awoke when he felt arms being wrapped around his waist, and he looked down to see a sleeping Kin snuggling her head into his chest. She had crawled into his sleeping bag and fallen asleep next to him. Zaku held her closer to him and stroked her black hair, pressing his lips against her forehead.

"I will fix this, Kin. Even if its the last thing I do." He whispered to her as he closed his eyes and fell asleep again.


End file.
